List of Indian spices

Indian spices include a variety of spices grown across the Indian subcontinent (a sub-region of South Asia). With different climates in different parts of the country, India produces a variety of spices, many of which are native to the Subcontinent, while others were imported from similar climates and have since been cultivated locally for centuries.

Spices are used in different forms - whole, chopped, ground, roasted, sauteed, fried and as topping. They blend food to extract the nutrients and bind them in a palatable form. Some spices are added at the end as a flavouring and are typically heated in a pan with ghee or cooking oil before being added to a dish. Lighter spices are added last, and spices with strong flavour should be added first. Curry is not a spice, but a term used by western people and refers to any dish in Indian cuisine that contains several spices blended together and could be with a gravy base or a dry item.

Below is a list of spices and other flavouring substances commonly used in India.

Sweet, floral and smokey cumin and anise-like flavour. Smaller in size than regular cumin. Often mistaken as Caraway seed. Though English translation is black cumin, the term black cumin is also used as English translation of Nigella sativa, kalonji